Are you getting the whole pie or just a slice?

So, in efforts to outsource their ‘sales’ department, companies have created programs where kids can sell their products and receive commission on the sale. These programs are by no means evil, in fact they have no doubt raised millions of dollars for schools around the nation, and filled countless stomachs with delectable delights.

But, shouldn’t a fundraiser be more than just asking people to buy an overpriced item they’ll have to wait weeks to receive?

The appeal of food fundraisers is that you selling such an tasty (albeit unhealthy) product that the product will sell itself. But how is somebody expected to shell out $25 for a pizza when they can have one delivered by Pizza Hut for $10?

Well my fundraising idea isn’t selling any product, its simply collecting the old cell phones that people (correctly) have chosen not to throw away. Skeptical? You should be after you’ve being pitched every other fundraiser in the book.

Well, let’s start off with this one simple question: How many phones do you have sitting at your house gathering dust, 2,3,4? If you answered none, I’m betting that either your 10 years old, have thrown them away, or hopefully recycled them.

Collect them up and send them in (shipping’s on me) and I’ll pay you more than a buck per phone. I can either re-sell them for re-use or melt them down for their precious metals like gold.
We’ll inventory them for you, e-mail you the report & send you a check, not points or some other arbitrary abstraction of money.

E-Waste (Electronic waste) is the fastest growing waste stream in America, and wouldn’t you rather have your students/kids being part of the solution and fundraise at the same time?

Are you getting the whole pie or just a slice?

How does cell phone recycling raise money for Non-profits?

As seen in my previous post, the vast majority of cell phones that are turned into cell phone recycling companies are candidates for re-use. Cell phone recyclers re-sell these phones to refurbishing companies who will take the old phone and perform any cosmetic/functional repairs to make it ready for the end consumer. Part of the sale price to the refurbishing company is paid out to the non-profit or individual who turned in the phone. The price a non-profit or individual gets for a recycled phone varies greatly depending on the phone turned in and the company who it was turned into.
In general, newer phones are worth more money (some upwards of $100), however if your recycling a box of old phones you should look for an average of $2-$3 per phone.